Ice cream and desserts in Knoxville: Gay Street, Kern's and Asbury Road

Last checked Oct. 18, 2026. Refreshed every three months.

Knoxville’s ice cream and dessert shops cluster in two places: Gay Street downtown, where Cruze Farm and Kilwins are a block apart near Market Square, and Kern’s Food Hall in South Knoxville, which has four dessert counters under one roof. Cruze Farm’s original shop is on Asbury Road in East Knoxville, and Kingston Pike in west Knoxville has frozen custard and a cake bakery.

How we made this list. The places come from OpenStreetMap records with a Knoxville address, the same data behind our local directory, checked against each place’s own website on Oct. 18, 2026. OpenStreetMap had few dessert shops, so we added Cruze Farm and Kilwins from their own sites, the Kern’s counters from the Kern’s Food Hall vendor pages, and Culver’s for its frozen custard. We left out places with no website of their own and a Dunkin’ page that would not load for us. The list is alphabetical. It is not a ranking or a recommendation, and nobody paid to be on it. Run one of these places? Write to us to correct your entry.

The list

The places

Cruze Farm churns ice cream with milk from its own local dairy farm. Its East Knoxville shop on Asbury Road has inside dining and a drive-thru, with its Pizza Barn at 2723 Asbury Road, and its downtown shop on Gay Street has inside dining. Calls go to one number with an extension for each shop.

Culver’s on Kingston Pike serves frozen custard with a posted flavor of the day, along with its burgers, through the dining room, curbside and drive-thru.

Disco Chicken & Donuts inside Kern’s Food Hall calls itself Knoxville’s only exclusively gluten-free fried chicken and donut shop, with weekly donut flavors.

French Cookie inside Kern’s Food Hall is a counter for cookies and sweets.

Irvey’s Ice Cream inside Kern’s Food Hall churns locally inspired flavors, with a flavor of the week and a flavor of the month.

Kilwins on Gay Street, by Market Square and Krutch Park, sells ice cream, chocolates and fudge, and customers can watch small-batch treats being made.

Marble City Sweets on Kingston Pike in west Knoxville is a bakery for custom cakes, cupcakes, cake pops, cookie cakes and macarons, with online ordering for pickup. It announces walk-in hours on its site and social media.

Myrtle’s Bakehouse inside Kern’s Food Hall bakes large cookies, with limited flavors each month, and hosts cookie decorating classes.

More places to eat in Knoxville

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Frequently asked questions

Where can I get ice cream in downtown Knoxville?

Cruze Farm has an ice cream shop at 445 S. Gay St., Suite 105, open from noon most days, and Kilwins is at 408 S. Gay St., open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Which Knoxville ice cream shops are open late?

Kilwins on Gay Street is open until 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and Cruze Farm downtown until 10:30 p.m. Culver’s on Kingston Pike serves frozen custard until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Is there a drive-thru ice cream shop in Knoxville?

Yes. Cruze Farm’s East Knoxville shop, 2721 Asbury Road, has inside dining and a drive-thru. Culver’s at 9113 Kingston Pike also has a drive-thru.

Where can I get dessert at Kern’s Food Hall?

Kern’s Food Hall, 2201 Kern’s Rising Way, has Irvey’s Ice Cream, Disco Chicken & Donuts, French Cookie and Myrtle’s Bakehouse, each with its own hours.